BMW Bikers of Metropolitan Washington

2008 BMWBMW Officers & Committee Chairs

I started riding in August, 2004. I bought a K75S off of E-bay from a guy in Michigan. A friend of mine and I drove from Illinois to the UP to pick up the bike. Never been on a bike (except as a passenger) I knew absolutely nothing about motorcycles. I practiced for a week and then took my driving test - flunked with Flying Colors!! Practiced another week and passed. Now I'm licensed and Dangerous!!! I didn't ride much my first year. I did a couple of decent trips including the MOA in Lima. In the Spring of '06, I moved to Virginia. This is when my riding really took off. I never knew what a "Twisty" was but boy did I learn that term really quick!! Now I'm loving VA and struggling with my BRICK!! Even with new tires, I still felt heavy. So in May, I bought a 2005 R1200ST from a guy in New Hampshire. Rode 2 up with Jim on his very uncomfortable GS and I rode my new bike home!!! I've been on the road quite a bit since. Now I love the Twisties!!!

 Vice President - Nancy Oswald (Hello Kitty)

 I started riding a 1980 Honda CM400T in 2000.  It only took a couple months until I was ready for a more, um, road worthy bike.  I decided on a Kawasaki Vulcan 750.  That summer, Walt, my husband, and I rode our bikes to Minnesota for a wedding.  I was on my new Vulcan and he on a 1971 CB750.  After the wedding, we rode up to Duluth and across the south shore of Lake Superior, camping less than 5 feet from where the small waves lapped at the shore in the UP of Michigan.  It was amazing to us how many people came up and talked to us about where we were from, where we were going and where we’d been.  That trip was the most wonderful thing I had done to that point.  I was hooked.  Completely hooked.
Unfortunately, early in 2004, a young man in a Jeep decided that his insurance company would like to buy my bike.  So he made a left turn in front of me and I ‘t-boned’ him.  We took the banged up bike to the Kawasaki dealer and it was deemed a total loss.  Walt was considering buying the bike back from the insurance company to fix up ourselves so we were talking to the mechanic who did the wreck estimate to see what he thought.  He advised against it because of the extent of the frame damage.  I said that I would just go buy the same bike in the current model year and he suggested I go to Bob’s BMW and take a look at a used Phoenix he had seen there the week before.  He thought with the miles I was putting on the bike that I might like a BMW.

So off to Bob’s we went.  Bob himself helped us that night – the Phoenix had been sold, but he showed me the Montauk and suggested I come back with my gear for a test ride.  A test ride?  Well, sure!  It wasn’t a week later that I was down there signing papers and taking delivery of a brand new BMW R1200C Montauk.  Part of the new owner package was a copy of Between The Spokes and I decided to join and got active on the “boards.”  It took me a little longer to get involved with club activities, but by 2006, I was Membership Chair.

I now ride a 2006 R1200GS, a 2006 Yamaha FZ6 and my first bike, the 1980 Honda CM400T.  I’ve been competing in the local endurance rallies since 2005 and really enjoy it.  So much so that I’m expanding my horizons with a 5 day event out of Salt Lake City in September, 2008.

I’m looking forward to working with the new Board of Directors for a very successful year – the focus of which, for me anyway, will be the Square Route Rally!  You can find me easily on the club’s message board, I go by ‘Hello Kitty’ or feel free to email me at VP@bmwbmw.org.

Secretary -  Marc Blanc (MABSTER)

I started riding about June of 2007 after hearing how great and wonderful it is from my brother Rick a.k.a. Doghouse.  I was slow to come around and figured I’d be the type of rider that would go out on weekends only and only during the nice warm summer months.  Well, it didn’t take long and I really got the bug.  I ride almost every day and pretty much at any tempurature.  My first bike was an F800ST.  I kept it for a couple of months and subsequently got an R1200RT.  I joined BMWBMW right after I earned my M classification and have met a lot of great people.  I think that if you belong to an organization and derive any benefit from it, then you should give something back by donating time and effort to its causes or operation.  As the father of a cancer survivor, I appreciate the efforts of communities like BMWBMW and others that support activities such as Ride for Kids and many other good causes.  I look forward to serving BMWBMW and to meeting and getting to know the members of this club.   

Treasurer - Elsie Smith (Elsie)

In 1990, Elsie joined the club and began serving on the board as the Secretary. Since then, she has held many chair positions, such as meeting/events, rally, membership, and editor. She has been honored as a Hall of Fame member. She began riding in the early '70s on small dual-sport bikes. In March 1990, she bought her first BMW, a used 1971 R75/5. After getting bitten by the long-distance riding "bug," Elsie competed and finished 28th in the 1997 Iron Butt Rally riding a 1985 K100RT. She has since then competed in several 48-, 24- and 10-hour rallies with varying success. Aboard her 2003 R1150RT she has taken Larry Grodsky's Stayin' Safe course, a two-day back-to-back track day with Reg Pridmore at Virginia International Raceway, and spent a week riding solo in Ontario and Quebec provinces. In 2001, she traveled with over 10 club members from Nice, France to Munich, Germany with Edelweiss Motorcycle Tours. Current plans include two 14-hour competitions in Canada for 2006 and an overseas tour in fall of 2007.

Elsie joined the club with every intention of serving its members. She feels that the best way to get the most out of the club experience is by actively participating and helping as much as one can.

Membership - Don Catterton (Sonar)

After 20 years of riding Japanese bikes and a brief spell with a Harley, I bought my first BMW, a K1200LT, in 2003 and joined BMWBMW shortly thereafter. My current ride is a 2004 K1200GT that I have outfitted for long distance rally and endurance riding. Since buying the 03 LT and later the GT, I’ve had the opportunity to ride cross country four times, have gotten involved in the Iron Butt Association and started participating in “endurance type” multi day rallies. I have always been active on the BMWBMW forums and have met some great friends who love to ride as much as I do. The wealth of knowledge of the members never ceases to amaze me. If you want to know how to fix your bike, where to find a great road to ride or a good place to eat, just post your question on the forums and you’ll have your answer; sometimes within minutes. See you on the road or at a BMWBMW event!

Editor - Rick Przybylski (RJP3579) 

It started for me back in the late 80’s. After flirting with a Suzuki RM125 on the trails, a friend of mine bough a new Honda 750 Nighthawk which he let me ride around the block a few times. I was hooked. Unfortunately it took me several years before I would actually get back on a street bike. Since it had been several years, a friend let me ride his K75 around a parking lot. He had always talked to me about BMW bikes and I became interested in them plus there was just something about the way they looked that attracted me to them. I purchased my first street bike in 2005 with my R850R and joined BMWBMW shortly afterwards. Took the Basic Rider Course a few months later and obtained my motorcycle license. In November of ’07, I purchased my ’04 R1150RT from Bob’s BMW and here I am.
Check out the Online Between the Spokes!

Government Affairs Steve Willis (JSWillis)

  Committee Chairs

34th Annual Square Route Rally Chairs - Nancy Oswald

 Rides - Ed Phelps (phelps2ride)

Check out BMWBMW's Ride Pages for the latest information and updates on our club and member rides and events, and tons of resources on the great roads in the mid-Atlantic area! Also check the message boards for last-minute and informal rides and ride ideas!

Safety - James Monroe (cdbugler)

 The Safety Chair / Committee is responsible for the promotion of safe riding practices by club members, for coordination of the activities of the club in the promotion of greater safety for all motorcyclists.

Internet - Jeremy Jones (landofjeremy)

I picked up my first bike about a year and a half ago after my wife offered me anything in exchange for my potty training our kids. Training our first child got me my license and the second got me the bike. I bought a used 650 GS after finding that cruisers weren't for me and sport bikes weren't really my style either. I've put on nearly 20k miles since, mostly commuting on the beltway.

As for computers, I've been playing with them since I was a kid. Computer Administration and Web Development have been my career of choice over the past 10 years and I'm happy to assist the BMWBMW community both on the road and on-line.

If you have any questions about the website, shoot me an email anytime.

Meetings & Events - Tina Fraembs (BMRGirl)

I am looking forward to improving our communication within the Club for Meetings and Events. With your help, I'm hoping to plan a fun-filled year!!! Please feel free to send me any suggestions for meeting places, speakers, upcoming events, Poker Runs, Tech Days, Rallies, Other Club's functions, and any other events you would like to share with the Club!! Send any comments or contributions to events@bmwbmw.org

Check out BMWBMW's Event Pages for more information on all our upcoming events!

Technical - Ray Sufczynski (Raysuf)

I was drawn to riding over three years ago. It took over a year to get into a class and I received my license. My first bike was a 91 Yamaha FZR600. After spending two years and not many mile of riding, I decided that wasn’t the bike for me. I went on a search for a bike that stood out. After hitting all the other local dealers I decided to checkout the BMW’s. I finally decided on a R1150RT and found BMWBMW shortly after that. Now that I’ve been a member for two years I hold the position of Tech Chair and ride a R1200GS.

Check out the BMWBMW Events Page for information on our Slack-Pack tech events, and the message boards for tips, tricks and informal maintenance and wrench-gatherings.

Sales - Christine "Tigger" Bauer (Bauer)

 I was very pleased to be asked to finish out the 2007 Sales Chair position. My riding experience includes being the "chick on the back" on and off over the years. My dad, when I was in elementary school, used to have a candy apple red Suzuki 500 and he would sometimes drop me off at school in my uniform (yes - Catholic school). I was the envy of every kid. It was awesome.

Now, I'm the passenger on Günter's 2004 R1200C which we love, although he's been looking at an R bike because "if you want to do rally's then we need some comfort and cargo space" was his quote (I think it's just an excuse to get another BMW) :) 

As most of you know, I tried the BRC at the end of June 2007 and was completely overwhelmed on the range and while the members of this awesome club have been very supportive and encouraging, I'm still re-thinking about trying again.

We're fairly new to the club, having joined in 2005, and have only been participating in activities for about the past year or so. I have only served as the 2007 SRR Door Prize/Vendor Retention chair but am trying to be more active and bring new ideas, energy and enthusiasm to the club.

Always remember – Tigger’s Bounce!

Check out BMWBMW's e-Commerce area for information on our club-logo shirts, hats, and more! 

Don't forget, feel free to e-mail us with any questions or concerns!